Employee Recognition Ideas - How Betfred and HGS UK are making every reward budget go further

Rippl recently ran a webinar with Amelia Billington, Group Head of Reward & Engagement at Betfred, and Zoe Beattie, Head of People Experience & Engagement at HGS UK.

We aimed to address the same challenge that every HR and Reward team is facing: employees need more support, but budgets aren’t growing at the same pace. The employee recognition ideas shared by Betfred and HGS UK demonstrate that meaningful engagement doesn’t always require a larger budget.

In this webinar, Betfred and HGS UK shared practical employee recognition ideas, engagement strategies and reward initiatives that are helping them deliver more value from existing budgets. Rather than focusing on large investments, the discussion explored how thoughtful timing, manager empowerment and creative use of existing resources can have a significant impact.

Watch the full discussion below, or continue reading for the key insights and examples shared during the session.

1. Make the timing work as hard as the reward

One of the strongest themes throughout the discussion was that impact isn’t always determined by budget size.

Betfred shared how a relatively small £5,000 investment in enhanced supermarket discounts was carefully timed around the back-to-school period. By aligning the campaign with a time when colleagues were naturally facing increased household costs, utilisation increased by over 120%, with colleagues spending around 50% more than during a typical month.

HGS UK has taken a different approach by providing colleagues with a permanent enhanced supermarket saving, recognising that financial pressures exist throughout the year rather than during isolated campaigns.

Key takeaway

Employees often remember relevant, well-timed support far more than larger rewards delivered at the wrong moment.

2. Recognition doesn’t always have to be expensive

Both organisations challenged the assumption that meaningful recognition requires significant budgets. Some of the most effective employee recognition ideas discussed during the webinar required very little budget at all.

Betfred shared how relatively small gestures, including a £10 Greggs voucher and Christmas recognition awards, generated more positive feedback than much larger historic bonus schemes.

The key wasn’t the monetary value—it was the immediacy and genuine appreciation behind the recognition.

HGS UK highlighted several non-financial initiatives that have proven equally valuable, including:

• Additional wellbeing breaks
• Manager-led recognition initiatives
• Seasonal engagement campaigns such as 12 Days of Glow
• Planned “Spin to Win” experiences featuring prizes such as extra annual leave, early finishes and additional breaks.

These initiatives demonstrate that recognition can be meaningful without relying solely on financial rewards.

3. Give managers ownership

Neither organisation believes recognition should sit solely with HR.

Instead, both have introduced manager-led approaches, giving leaders ownership of recognition budgets and encouraging them to reward achievements as they happen.

Rather than central teams attempting to recognise thousands of employees themselves, managers are empowered to celebrate success within their own teams.

The discussion also explored the importance of identifying employee champions—colleagues who naturally encourage others to engage with recognition and benefits programmes.

By giving these advocates early access, listening to their feedback and involving them in launches, both organisations have successfully increased awareness and engagement across their workforces.

4. Listen to colleagues before launching new initiatives

A recurring theme throughout the webinar was that successful reward strategies begin with listening.

Before introducing new initiatives, HGS UK regularly seeks colleague feedback to understand what employees genuinely value rather than relying on assumptions.

This approach led to initiatives including monthly wallet boosts and several engagement campaigns directly influenced by employee suggestions.

Similarly, Betfred emphasised continually reviewing benefit usage, communication effectiveness and colleague feedback to ensure benefits remain relevant and valuable.

The message was clear:

Employees are often the best source of ideas for improving engagement.

5. Launching is only the beginning

Perhaps the biggest lesson from both organisations was that launching a platform or benefit is only the starting point.

Successful programmes require ongoing communication, regular campaigns and continual promotion. These employee recognition ideas work because they’re supported by consistent communication rather than one-off launches.

Examples discussed included:

• Monthly engagement campaigns
• Benefit spotlights
• Seasonal promotions
• Platform notifications
• Manager communications
• Champion networks
• Lifecycle communications from recruitment through to onboarding and beyond

As Amelia Billington explained during the discussion, if organisations stop talking about their benefits, employees quickly forget they’re there.